FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE

The movie is definitely a cut above the abysmal second entry, but remains woefully uninspired despite the addition of Mads Mikkelsen.

'Return to the magic', the poster for The Secrets of Dumbledore, the third entry in the mostly pointless Harry Potter offshoot Fantastic Beasts, implores the audience. But while the movie is definitely a cut above the abysmal second entry, The Secrets of Dumbledore contains precious little movie magic.

The best part of the picture is the very first scene, wherein feuding wizards and former lovers - Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald meet in a restaurant to talk over the impending wizarding war. It's a well-written scene, excellently acted by Jude Law and Mads Mikkelsen, who is a much more menacing Grindelwald than the fired Johnny Depp ever was.

The promise of those taut first few minutes never materialises in the ensuing two hours as The Secrets of Dumbledore gives you a hollow look at beautiful CGI creatures and is woefully uninspired in the too obvious parallels it draws between the wizarding war and the rise of fascism in thirties Germany.

Throw in the dull de facto protagonist, Newt Scamander, and a slew of set-pieces that bog down the main narrative and you no longer need to wonder why this movie vastly underwhelms.

release: 2022

director: David Yates

starring: Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law, Ezra Miller, Mads Mikkelsen